1970 Chevelle Warranty Card Protect-O-Plate

 

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Decode your Protect-O-Plate Warranty card.

 

 

The Protect-O-Plate (P-O-P) was designed to be used by Chevrolet dealers to identify the owner and the vehicle.  The owner's name, address and the vehicle's delivery date was embossed on a special tape affixed to the plate.

 

The P-O-P was glued to the inside rear cover of the "1970 Chevrolet New Vehicle Warranty land Owner Protection Plan" booklet. When warranty service was performed on a customer's car the P-O-P was stamped on the work order.

 

The P-O-P was never meant to be used as documentation the way enthusiasts today use the card. Then again, the body broadcast sheets, trim build sheets, etc. weren't meant to be used either and were more often than not  discarded at the assembly plant. Likewise, the P-O-P was usually discarded when the vehicle went out of warranty or when the car was sold as warranties usually did not go to the new owner.

 

Today, the P-O-P is one of the best pieces of documentation you can have as it not only identifies the VIN but also the correct engine ID code and date of the engine, the correct transmission number and date along with the rear end gear ratio and date. Some options were also coded on the P-O-P such as power steering, power brakes, radio, air conditioning, etc.

 

The Protect-O-Plate is located inside the inside rear cover of the warranty booklet. The original stamping is a mirrored stamping, this example is from the Kansas City, MO.  assembly plant.

 

Beware of reproduction (fake) Protect-O-Plates, they can make a put-together Chevelle appear to be authentic. Sellers will even put your name on authentic-looking GM tape. Apparently it's not illegal but any fake documentation is misleading to a potential buyer and, to many Chevelle owners, unethical as well.

 

This is the above Kansas City, MO. P-O-P mirrored for easy reading.

 

 

Line 1
* The complete VIN for the car.
* The "H" is for the carburetor type and in this example it is an "H" for a Holley carburetor.

 

Line 2:
* Engine identification showing the engine plant code ("T" in this example for the Tonawanda engine plant), a 4-digit number for the day and month of the engine assembly, and a two-letter suffix code identifying the engine size/hp and transmission type. in this example the engine was assembled at the Tonawanda engine plant on October 15 (1969) and it's a 402cid 375hp engine with manual transmission and aluminum head option. ⁽¹⁾

* The rear end ratio, date, and rear end assembly plant. in this example "KF" is a Positraction 3.55:1 gear ratio, 1104 is the assembly date of November 4 (1969) and "B" is for the Buffalo, NY. axle plant.

* The letter "N" in this example is the build month of the car, November 1969. ⁽³⁾

 

Line 3:
* The P0M05 decodes to a Muncie manual transmission for the 1970 model year assembled on August 5 (1969). ⁽²⁾
* The number "1" in the second position indicates the car was optioned with RPO J50 power brakes; the number "3" in the third position indicates the car was optioned with either RPO U63, U69, or U79 radio equipment; the number "3" in the fourth position indicates the car was optioned with RPO J52 (power) disc brakes.
* The bowtie emblem indicates this is a Chevrolet plate.

 

 

Line 1
* The complete VIN for the car.
* The "R" is for the carburetor type and in this example it is an "R" for a Rochester carburetor.

 

Line 2:
* Engine identification showing the engine plant code ("T" in this example for the Tonawanda engine plant), a 4-digit number for the day and month of the engine assembly, and a two-letter suffix code identifying the engine size/hp and transmission type. in this example the engine was assembled at the Tonawanda engine plant on January 19, 1970 and it's a 402cid 350hp engine with manual transmission.

* The rear end ratio, date, and rear end assembly plant. in this example "CF" is a Positraction 3.31:1 gear ratio, 0107is the assembly date of January 7 and "B" is for the Buffalo, NY. axle plant.

* The number "1 in this example is the build month of the car, January 1970. ⁽³⁾

 

Line 3:
* The P0R03 decodes to a Muncie manual transmission for the 1970 model year assembled on October 3 (1969). ^{(2) (4)}
* The number "1" in the second position indicates the car was optioned with RPO J50 power brakes; the number "3" in the third position indicates the car was optioned with either RPO U63, U69, or U79 radio equipment; the number "3" in the fourth position indicates the car was optioned with RPO J52 (power) disc brakes.
* The bowtie emblem indicates this is a Chevrolet plate.

 

⁽¹⁾ Beginning in late 1969, the 396cid engine was increased to 402cid and began using a 3-letter suffix code. The appropriate 3-letter suffix code will be stamped on the engine pad; some plants would stamp the 3-letter suffix code on the Protect-O-Plate as well, some did not include the leading "C" character.
⁽²⁾ All 1969 and later Muncie 4-speed manual transmissions will have a letter "A," "B," or "C" stamped on the transmission case to identify an M20, M21, or M22 respectively. Some plants included this letter on the Protect-O-Plate, some did not.
⁽³⁾ November and December (1969) build months use letters "N" and "D" while all other months use a number.
(4) Most plants did not specify which Muncie 4-speed transmission was used, i.e. M20, M21, or M22 with the letters "A," "B," or "C." However, all SS 396s with the L34 or L78 were limited to the M20 or M21 while the LS5 and LS6 were limited to the heavy duty M22 version.

 

Arlington, Flint, and Van Nuys plants typically coded "A," "B," or "C" for the M22 or the letters "CWO" for the M22 and broadcast code "WO."
Arlington, Flint, Baltimore, and Van Nuys typically would stamp the entire 3-letter engine suffix code such as "CTX."

 

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